The Word of the Day (WOTD), which is emailed to readers Monday-Friday, is intended to be an additional guide to regular bible study and useful tool in breaking down the Word of God through everyday principles and life settings to better comprehend the Word of God, grow closer in our walk with God and convict us to live according to the Word of God.

Monday, October 17, 2011

Word of the Day (10-17-11)

Good Morning Everyone

Today is Monday October 17, 2011

The word of the day comes from Jeremiah 17:14 ESV (English Standard Version)

Heal me, O LORD, and I shall be healed; save me and I shall be saved, for you are my praise.

My Interpretation

The new living translation says it like this: O LORD, if you heal me, I will be truly healed; if you save me, I will be truly saved. My praises are for you alone!

The definition of the word heal is to make sound or whole; to restore to health; to cause (an undesirable condition) to be overcome; to patch up; to restore to original purity or integrity; to return to a sound state (according to Merriam-Webster’s Collegiate Dictionary). The definition of the word save is to deliver from sin; to rescue or deliver from danger or harm; to preserve or guard from injury, destruction, or loss; to keep from being lost to an opponent; to prevent an opponent from scoring or winning; maintain, preserve (according to Merriam-Webster’s Collegiate Dictionary). A translation word(s) for save given on my Logos software has save as: saved, saves, salvation, deliver, delivered, delivers, help, victory, rescue, savior, safe, deliverance, spare.

I get reassurance when I see this verse because I am reminded of what Jesus tells us in John 6:37 All that the Father gives me will come to me, and whoever comes to me I will never cast out. Paul tells us in Romans 10:13 For everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved. These two scriptures help us prepare for what God can and will do in Hebrews 11:6 And without faith it is impossible to please Him, for whoever would draw near to God must believe that He exists and that He rewards those who seek Him.

So you may be thinking what these scriptures have to do with our text for today. Glad you were thinking it. Before we can get to a place where we are willing to go to God believing that He can do that which we need Him to do in our lives, we need to know and believe some things. John 6:37 tells us that there is nothing to horrible, to crazy, to horrific, to mortifying, to (fill in blank) that we have done that God would not take us in if we would just come to Him. That is key because a lot of people have this misconception that God won’t take them because of what they have done in their lifetime. Its not that they don’t want to come, you can hear in their voice that they want to feel accepted and they want to feel loved, they just aren’t sure if they come to Jesus that He wouldn’t just turn them away and say your sins are too great. But Jesus makes clear that is not the case. If we come He will be more than willing to take us in. He won’t cast us out!

The second thing we have to realize and take reassurance in is Romans 10:13 because in this scripture after we have made up in our mind to come on God, if we just go a step further and call on God, He will save us! It doesn’t say He might if we haven’t done this wrong before or if we didn’t grow up in this neighborhood, with these parents, in these conditions. He simply says call on Me and I will save you. See I honestly believe if more people knew that they could just call on the Lord He would get them right and they wouldn’t have to think that they couldn’t call on Him until they got right, more people would come to Christ.

Third, and the reason I have this third as opposed to first is because its harder to have faith in someone if you don’t know why you should have faith in someone. If I just met you and someone tells me that I need to trust you I am going to ask for what. Why do I trust you? What do I trust you in? Now if you tell me that you are physician and I am having health problems, I am more inclined to believe you know what you talking about. Why because you gave me your reasoning for why I should, you gave me your credentials that I can now base my faith on. Because I know that God just wants me to come as I am and because I know that if I just call on His name I can be saved, I am willing to put my faith in Him that He is (what is He: deliver, savior, healer, redeemer, restorer, loving, kind, forgiving, gentle, merciful, gracious, caring, understanding…). See the Lord told me who He was and what He was about in John 6:37 & Romans 10:13 so when I get to Hebrews 11:6 I just know…I just Know…I JUST KNOW that He is who He says HE IS and that because I didn’t come to Him doubting but reassured that my prayers even in my worst state if I come relying on Him to save me/to heal me/to deliver me/to set me free/to make me whole/to restore me/to preserve me/to help me overcome and undesirable situation that HE WILL DO IT!!!

So when we take all those verses and see what our text says, it sounds like an individual who has weighed his options and realizes that there is ONLY ONE who can heal him totally. ONLY ONE who can save him fully. And if the Lord doesn’t do it, IT CAN”T BE DONE!!!

Heal me, O LORD, and I shall be healed; save me and I shall be saved, for you are my praise.

O LORD, if you heal me, I will be truly healed; if you save me, I will be truly saved. My praises are for you alone!